Potential NYC mayors take stand on surveillance of Muslim students

The Associated Press

Published 12:00 am, Sunday, February 26, 2012

NEW YORK -- Potential candidates for Mayor Michael Bloomberg's office are taking stands on the New York Police Department's surveillance of Muslim students, ranging from cautious support to a warning about curtailing civil liberties.

Bloomberg, who leaves office after the 2013 election, has said that he finds "worrisome" the idea that his successor might abandon NYPD policies that have kept New Yorkers safe.

The NYPD used undercover officers and informants to infiltrate Muslim student groups at a dozen colleges in New York City, upstate New York, Connecticut, New Jersey and Pennsylvania, documents obtained by The Associated Press show. One of those schools is Yale University.The monitoring was part of the department's anti-terrorism efforts.

But Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer said in a statement to the AP over the weekend that "it is troubling when people are subject to surveillance and investigation simply because they are members of a particular group."

However, the Democrat, a declared candidate for mayor, praised the city's police department for doing an "extraordinary job protecting our city," as long as authorities make sure anti-terrorism efforts "do not trample on the civil liberties that all citizens have a right to enjoy."

Police Commissioner Raymond Kelly said Friday that his department is "continuing to do what we believe necessary to protect the city, pursuant to the law." He did not elaborate but called the surveillance legal, appropriate and constitutional.

NYC Comptroller John C. Liu, who is expected to run for mayor, praised "the dedicated men and women of the NYPD" for doing "an extraordinary job of keeping New Yorkers safe." But in a statement, he also warned that "we should not as a matter of policy profile people based on religion or race -- it goes against everything this city stands for."

Liu, a Queens Democrat, faces a federal investigation into his fundraising operation after reports of inconsistencies in his campaign finances.

"I support the tactics that they've used," said Allon, who plans to run as both a Liberal and a Democrat. "I think we've got a much larger problem here, which is making sure there's no terrorist attack on New York."